Jeffrey Archer, bestselling British novelist and disgraced politician, dies aged 86

Published on 06/10/2026 - 9:13 GMT+2•Updated 9:14 Bestselling British author and scandal-plagued Conservative politician Jeffrey Archer has died aged 86. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Archer died “suddenly and peacefully” at his home yesterday, a day before the global release of his final novel, “Adam and Eve,” publisher HarperCollins said. The new book out today, like his bestselling novel “Kane and Abel,” follows a pair of biblically named characters born on the same day to different social classes. "Kane and Abel", released in 1979, remains one of the best-selling novels in the world, with an estimated 34 million copies sold globally. Kate Elton, HarperCollins UK CEO and Archer's editor, said: "It has been one of the great privileges of my publishing life to have been Jeffrey Archer's editor. He was the master storyteller and an editor's dream - phenomenally hard-working, utterly committed to completing draft after draft to get every word as perfect as possible, and a true champion of the 'team' nature of great publishing." Archer sold more than 300 million books in his five-decade writing career, including "Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less", the William Warwick series, and the Clifton Chronicles, which started with 2011’s "Only Time Will Tell" and spanned seven novels up until 2016’s "This Was A Man". The former Conservative MP and Conservative Party deputy chairman was imprisoned in 2001 after being found guilty of lying and cheating in his 1987 libel case against The Star newspaper. He had sued the newspaper that accused him of paying a sex worker and won £500,000 in damages. A jury found that Archer had fabricated an alibi during the case and he was sentenced to four years for perjury and perverting the course of justice. Archer was released early in 2003 and he returned to the House of Lords, politically non-affiliated, until he retired in 2024. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch described Archer's death as a "huge shock". Writing on X, she said: "I am incredibly saddened to hear this news. He had sent me a lovely message just this morning and was always a great source of encouragement to me personally."